The Key to the Gate
by Gnomish Wrench of Reorx
Summary: Through a rather cliche method, Moriarty lured Sherlock and John to a very strange gate in the middle of a forest. Before they knew it, the two find themselves in a world like they never imagined. In order to leave it and return to London they must collect 8 gym badges. Can they collect all of them before it is too late? Or is there a darker force at work?
1. I Was Wrong

It was a lovely day in 221B, Sherlock was just finishing up a case.

"These cases just get more and more dull every day," called Sherlock from the other room. "I swear," he finished, "these criminals lack creativity and even basic intelligence!"

"Sherlock," I replied," I have a baby to attend to, and patients! I don't have time to listen to you complain about the downfall of the average London criminal."

"John, you forget that today is a holiday, you have no patients; not to mention the fact that your baby is at the sitters. You have grown quite absent-minded since your child was born. Besides," Sherlock continued, "what would you be doing here if you didn't have time?" I was trying to think of a suitable comeback, when something started ringing. It wasn't my phone as mine had a different ring tone; I looked to Sherlock, the sparkle in his eyes and the smile on his face clearly said that it wasn't his, or perhaps that he had lost his phone and now had the chance to find it. That might have been a reason he was still borrowing my phone from time to time, but I thought the first option was more likely. On the other hand, I wouldn't be surprised if his phone were to get lost in the jungle of papers he kept everywhere. We rummaged around trying to find the source. Much as I had suspected someone had donated a new phone, Moriarty most likely. We found the ringing coming from a package that came in the mail that morning.

It was a strange looking phone, if that was even what it was. It looked more like a watch with a large face and buttons. There were two of them, one red, and the other blue. Both were ringing. With the faces reading "Moriarty is calling, accept?" We quickly looked into each other's eyes and nodded. We shared the same idea. Both of us reached for a watch and put it on. We hit the accept button at almost the same time.

"Hello!" Moriarty's voice called out clearly though the small device. A picture also came up, he was wearing strange clothes, and in front of an unfamiliar background. I had never seen anything like it. "I have got a little game for you. I do so hope you will be enjoying it." He seemed overjoyed with himself. "I know Sherlocky will be happy to play, but I am so nice I even brought a gift for his pet."

"Wha-!" I started off, quite afraid of what he meant by that. He cut me off shortly though.

"Hush, hush, little hedgehog, all shall be shown in due time. Calm your quills, now where was I? Oh yes, now I remember! I brought some treats for you. If you are good boys and follow directions I will reward you."

"What do you have that we could possibly want?" asked Sherlock. "What reason do we have to play your game?"

"Well, I am glad you asked," he said, "have a little surprise for both of you." He moved his camera back and we were able to catch the silhouette of a woman. "If you choose not to play along, then my two little party favors will go to waste. I guess I will just have to throw them out then." The woman cried in a voice that I would know anywhere. My mind was paralyzed. Sherlock also seemed to recognize the voice and turned to me with concern. "It seems that you like the treats! Good! Play nice now." With that the call had ended. A map was sent to us with a small X marking a location. I was still in shock.

"Did he say two?" I asked in disbelief. "That means-!"

"Yes," Sherlock confirmed, "we have no choice now. We will go to the ends of the earth if necessary. No matter what it takes…we will get Mary, and your daughter, back!"

* * *

We wasted no time, and although we suspected it was a trap, we picked up a few items and left for the X. In hindsight I realize that Sherlock most likely knew it was very foolish, but for my sake he didn't say anything. He most likely didn't want to hurt me further. He did however insist that we called both Mary's cellphone and the sitters'. Mary's kept ringing, and the sitter confirmed in tears that my daughter was gone. With that we set off.

When we finally got to the X we were in a large forest. A large gate blocked our path; it was locked with eight keyholes. Each unique and very strange. The watch chimed in and we were once again met with the horrid voice of Moriarty.

"Ah good, you came. After all of this time I was beginning to think you weren't coming. Well," he continued, "here are the rules of the game, if you will notice there is a gate that has eight holes. I will be waiting on the other side. I suggest that you join me as soon as you can. Just a small warning, now that you have wandered into this forest, you can't return to London until you have opened that gate." The video cut off and we were left alone. When we turned around we saw that what he said was true, the path we had come in by was gone. Another path had opened and we seemed to have no choice but to follow it. Just before we left Sherlock took out my phone and snapped a picture of the locks.

The path was heavily wooded and strange shapes littered the scene. Animals we had never seen before popped their heads out of the tree line. They may have never seen humans before. Throughout all of this Sherlock was surprisingly quiet. Most likely he thought that I needed my space because of what just happened. I had never heard, or perhaps not heard, him this quiet before. Even when he lived alone I don't think he was this quiet. His efforts were appreciated, but at that moment I would have liked noting more than to hear the sounds of my friend's voice. At least it would feel more normal then. The forest soon ebbed and we found ourselves near a town.

It was a quiet little town, not many houses. Most likely the biggest attraction was what looked to be a research lab. Thinking they might be able to help us, we went inside. We were met by a short, almost stocky, man wearing a white lab coat. He had thick eyebrows and greying hair.

"Ah," he said, "I've been expecting you." I looked to Sherlock.

"Moriarty must have told him," Sherlock said.

"Is that my grandson's name? I can never quite remember. In any case, no Mo-ri-art-y, my goodness what were my children thinking? No, Moriarty had nothing to do with it. You are the new trainers, aren't you? Come to pick up your first Pokémon?" The man rambled on. I looked to Sherlock for an explanation.

"This is a laboratory; he is obviously the head researcher. He started as an intern, eventually moving up the ranks. They test animals here, very inhumanly. Most likely they are trying to 'improve' them through biochemical means. He has broken his back and a number of bones. He has been through a lot in the past few years. There have been multiple fires in the lab, yet they have no sources of fire. No Bunsen burners, no gas lines. There have also been numerous floods. A lot of wind too, even though there are no fume hoods. Acid has been sitting on these floors for quite a while. Water has been freezing and melting in places it shouldn't be and yet the temperature has always remained constant. It is very strange." We were interrupted when the man asked a very strange question.

He turned to Sherlock and asked "so, are you a boy or a girl?" Sherlock looked furious.

"What type of idiot are you?! Are you blind? "

"I'll take that as you are a girl then. Come, you need better clothes, those don't suit you." Sherlock was whisked away by the man and taken to a dressing room. "Take whatever you like!" Before I knew it Sherlock had come out of the dressing room wearing a dark navy blue vest, almost black, a white shirt, and perfectly complimented red tie. White pants and black shoes completed the outfit.

"Don't say a thing," he warned, "the man locked me in the dressing room until I put something else on, and I was not going to wear a dress." The man returned. This time he turned to me and asked the same question. I had learned from Sherlock's mistake and answered quickly.

"I'm a boy." He took me back to the changing rooms as well. I was reluctant to give up my sweater, but I figured that it would be best to blend into the culture of the people. I picked up a black jacket, a white shirt, beige pants and black shoes. I saw the dress that Sherlock was talking about. It was more of a coat. It was black with silver buttons lining the middle. He would have looked very nice in it, even if it wasn't exactly very fitting for his form. "

Now that we have that matter settled, it is time to pick your starter. You may choose between a fire-type, a water-type, or a grass-type. Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur…where already taken! So you get to choose between Growlithe, Psyduck, or Abomasnow! I'll let the young man go first this time." Neither of us really knew what he was talking about so I simply said the only one I could remember.

"Growlithe sounds good." He handed me a strange ball that was half red and half white.

"Now your turn young lady!" Although it was apparent that Sherlock was enraged by this mistake of gender, he did not say anything. "Since you were so patient, I will give you an extra option." The professor smiled brilliantly. "You may also pick Larvitar. Larvitar is a rock type." Sherlock thought for a few seconds, most likely trying to figure out what was the best choice.

"Larvitar." He seemed so confident in his choice, it made me question mine. He handed Sherlock a ball just like mine, threw us two "pokedex" and just about threw us out the door.

"Just fill that up and I'll get the data on any Pokémon you encounter. Have a nice trip!" He turned back to his lab and disappeared inside it. We examined the spheres we had received. Sherlock pushed the button in the middle of the black band that ran between the white half and the red half. A strange light filled the area. Something began to take shape. It was much bigger than the ball. It was two feet tall, light green with a red diamond stomach. It had black rhombuses on both sides of its stomach, as well as on both sides of its pinwheel shaped tail. Its hands and feet were stubby. He looked up at Sherlock and yawned. Sherlock puzzled over how such a large creature could fit into such a small ball, and not add any extra weight to the ball. I tried mine. A similar series of events happened again. This time however, a different shape emerged. I was met with a puppy. It was just a little taller than Sherlock's beast. The Growlithe's' body was orange with black stripes running across its back and legs. It had a large patch of fluffy fur on its chest and head, like a Mohawk. The tail looked very soft. He looked up to me. A stranger walked up to us.

"Oh cool! A Growlithe and a Larvitar. What do you intend you name them?"

"Uh, hmmmm…I think Vincent is a good name for him." I was unsure at first, but I eventually grew to love both the Pokémon and the name.

"Isaac, it seems to suit him," Sherlock said.

"Nice choices," said the stranger. "Would you like to battle me? I know that the both of you are new to this, so how about a double battle?"

"Sounds interesting," Sherlock said, "it might be a good idea." The man sent out a fuzzy creature, it had red compound eyes and antenna. The pokedex chimed up.

"Venonat," it said in a monotone voice, "the insect Pokémon. Poison oozes from all over its body. Its eyes also function as a radar unit. Its primary diet is composed of insects it finds at night."

"I'll start. Venonat, use tackle against Larvitar!" The Venonat ran up to Isaac and tackled him. Isaac was hurt a bit, but he stayed in the fight. I looked at my pokedex to find out what attacks Vincent had.

"Vincent, use…bite?" Vincent ran up to Venonat and latched on with his teeth. Vincent didn't let go and Venonat began to panic. Venonat ran in circles desperately trying to get Vincent detached from his head. Vincent jumped off just before Venonat ran into a tree.

"Isaac! Use leer." Isaac glared at the Venonat. The startled Venonat backed into the tree he just ran into.

"Venonat, could you use disable?" Venonat nodded and summoned a glowing orb in his small hands. He threw it Vincent.

"Vincent, use bite." Vincent shook his head.

"Your growlithe can't use bite because Venonat disabled bite."

"Oh," I said, "in that case, can you use roar?" Vincent let out a loud roar and Venonat panicked. Venonat tried to run behind the tree, but his trainer managed to coax him back into the battle.

"Isaac! Use bite." Isaac quickly bit Venonat and released his grip. Venonat fell down and the battle was over.

"Good battle!" The stranger gave us both some money and began to walk off.

"Wait," I called. I grabbed my phone from Sherlock and showed him the picture of the gate. "Have you seen any objects that are in the same design as these?"

"Yes, I have actually. Those shapes are the same shapes as the gym badges. You get them after you defeat the gym leaders. There is one to the north and one to the south, as well as others throughout the region. You can go up route 1 to Viridian City, or down to Cinnabar Island. There is also one in Pewter City, Fuchisa City, Celadon City, Saffron City, Cerulean City, and Vermillion City. Good luck!" The stranger gave us each a map and walked off.

"Where do you suppose we should go first?" We looked at the maps and I wondered where we should go. Then again, I didn't know where we were.

"Viridian city would be best," Sherlock answered, "we don't have enough money for a boat ride to Cinnabar. Since we get money when we win a battle, we should have enough by the time we make a round around the region." We wandered north to route one. We were immediately greeted by high grass. It was over my face making it difficult to see, and walk. I pressed the button in the middle of the poke ball and Vincent returned to the ball. I heard a rustling in the grass. Before I knew it a wild Pokémon, Furret the pokedex told me, attacked. I called Vincent out again. I told him to bite the Furret, Vincent lunged at it, but it managed to evade the attack. The Furret jumped in and out of the grass like a ninja. He jumped out and scratched Vincent across his side. We tried the attack again, but it continued to fail. Vincent grew weaker and weaker with every hit the Furret landed. I heard another rustling toward my side. A Pidgey joined the brawl on the side of my opponent. I knew that Vincent couldn't take on another opponent. He couldn't even match the speed of our first. Another rustling sound started from my right. I hoped that this was only a dream, even more than before. Everything today was turning out horribly. In a single day I lost my family, I gave up everything I knew just to run after them, and I might end up dead by the night's end. Luckily, that final rustling was not another foe. Sherlock was the one who appeared this time.

"Isaac! Since John can't seem to even take down a Furret, let's pick up the slack. Take down its defenses, Leer!" Isaac's eyes grew dark and sharp. The Furret stopped in its tracks, and seeing the opening I ordered Vincent to attack. The Furret resisted at first, but was soon unconscious. In the meantime Sherlock was working on the Pidgey. Vincent went up a level. He looked proud of himself, even if he was tired. He had learned a new attack and both of us were excited to see how it worked. Excitedly, he tried out the new attack he learned. Ember. The grass around us was dry, and so the fire spread quickly. Sherlock had just finished off the Pidgey and Isaac went up a level when the fire started.

"John! You had to go and start a fire!" I would be stating the obvious if I said he was mad. "Could you at least wait until we were outside of the grass before lighting it on fire?!"

"Was it my fault that this grass is so flammable?" I scrambled around trying to find the best way out. Sherlock pointed to the northwest.

"We need to go that way."

"How do you know?!"

"I will tell you later! Right now we have to worry about getting out of the grass." We ran as quickly as we could through the now flaming grass. The wild Pokémon were too busy trying to run that they didn't even try to attack. I felt rather guilty. There was no time for that though; we had to get to safety. Vincent and Isaac were returned to their poke balls. We ran up a gradual slope and the grass cut away. We saw a trainer standing close to the ledge trying to put out the fire with her Pokémon. Her Azumarill was preforming a rain dance while her Diglett used sand-attack.

"If you help us out I will battle you. And heal your Pokémon!" We started helping. Isaac used Sandstorm and I ordered Vincent to dig up dirt so I could throw it onto the fire. With the heavy rain and sand falling onto the field, the fire soon stopped. Sherlock seemed to be puzzled.

"Where is the sand coming from," I asked. He didn't really react to my question. He only kept muttering strange things I could only guess were equations.

"It is possible!" Sherlock shouted happily. Instead of asking how exactly there could be a sandstorm in the middle of the forest I took to asking the trainer a few important questions. Such as type advantage. Sherlock still told me his theory. The trainer healed our Pokémon and challenged us to a battle. We fought one on one this time. We fought others up on the way, as well as wild Pokémon, but we ended up making it to Viridian City just by nightfall.

"We need to challenge the leader." I said. This time Sherlock stepped in and tried to end my foolishness.

"John," he said, his hands on my shoulders, "now is not the time for that. We are tired, and our Pokémon are tired. If we challenge the leader now there is no way we could win. We need to train more. We have only just managed to defeat the trainers we have encountered. There is no way we are ready to take on the gym leader."

"Sherlock!" At this point I was growing angry. "The longer we wait to take on the gym leader the longer my daughter and wife are left in the hands of that monster! We can't stand to wait any longer! Who knows what atrocities he is doing to them right now! You think you are bloody brilliant, but if you can't help me when it matters, then what good are you?! If I need save my family by myself, then I will! You left me before, and let me think you were dead; even the homeless knew! The homeless, Sherlock, the homeless! They are willing to betray anyone just for some loose change! Ohhh, but you are soooo clever! You still wouldn't let me in on your little secret! Why?! Because I would ruin it? Is that why? Do you really have that little confidence in me?! And now you refuse to help me! What type of a friend are you?! I think you are just here to torment me! I do not have time to laze about! I have to save my family while I still can! I don't have time to delay!" I stormed off not thinking of what would happen. I ran to the gym, and by some miracle was able to convince the gym leader to battle me.

The gym leader, Blue, started off with an Exeggutor. A grass/psychic. I ordered Vincent to use ember. The move hit. And the leaves on its head caught on fire. The Exeggutor ran into Vincent. Vincent only just managed to dodge the attack before the huge body came crashing into the ground. The fight wasn't over yet though. Exeggutor got back up. I ordered Vincent to use bite this time, and it was also very effective. Dodging and biting we wore down the foe. With a final ember it fell. Blue returned it and sent out Rhydon. Sherlock was right and Vincent and I were tired. We got in the first hit, but that was all. The Rhydon threw a large boulder at Vincent. He staggered slightly; to claim his victory Rhydon threw another boulder, this time hitting harder. Vincent was falling, but still another rock came, this time hitting home. Vincent fell, and I thought he was done for. I scooped him up in my arms. Tears flowing down my cheeks. I couldn't bear to lose another. His pulse was soft, and his body was limp. He opened his eyes, just a little bit. I ran him off to the Pokémon center as fast as I could.

Nurse Joy was at the counter. It was late, and so there wasn't a long line.

"What happened?" She looked over Vincent, and then she looked me in the eyes, "what happened?"

"I challenged the gym leader before I was ready," I explained.

"Blue has a wide variety of Pokémon, so you will want to catch more before you challenge him again. Did Professor Oak not teach you how to catch wild Pokémon?"

"No, I'm afraid he didn't," I confirmed.

"Did you know that you are the second person I taught tonight?" She said with a laugh. "Chansey, could you take care of anyone who wanders in?" Chansey nodded, and Nurse Joy took me out to route one. Vincent stayed behind and was wheeled to the back to be treated by Chansey.

Nurse Joy took out a poke ball and released a Cubone. The Cubone ran into a tree and head-butted it. A large red caterpillar fell out.

"Cubone," she yelled, "use head-butt!" Without a second thought the Cubone ran head first into the Wurmple. The Wurmple was hit and fell back. Nurse Joy threw an empty poke ball at the Wurmple. The ball opened and the Wurmple turned into a bright ball of light and went inside. The ball wiggled three times, and then stopped. I waited for Sherlock to say something witty, until I realized that my friend was no longer by my side. Nurse Joy went over to the ball and picked it up.

"Now I can train this Wurmple, and battle with others. You can specialize or use all types, like Blue. You can carry six at a time, after that newly caught Pokémon go to your PC box. Also make sure to battle wild Pokémon, and trainers, for experience. Good luck!" She walked off to return to the Pokémon center. I knew that Sherlock was right, so I went to the Pokémon center to get some rest. I didn't see Sherlock, and I wondered what he was doing now. I knew that I couldn't win against Blue without him.

The morning dew covered the grass on Route 1. I wandered around the tall grass until a Pidgey emerged for battle. I sent out Vincent. We weakened the pidgey, and I threw a poke ball I had bought at the poke mart. The ball shook three times and stopped. I went over and picked up the ball. I called her June. The three of us trained all day. Eventually night fell and we returned to the center. The next day we trained at Route 22, and after that in Viridian city, battling trainers, and Route 2. We fought all of the trainers and won every battle. A trainer gave me a dirty old fishing rod. I caught a Magikarp, before I knew just how poor in battle they were. I still trained him though. I would often have my other Pokemon weaken a foe, and then have Aldred, my Magikarp, finish him off. Eventually, I felt ready to take on Blue again.

"Back again, huh?" Blue asked.

"Yes, and this time I will win!" I replied.

"I just hope your battling is as strong as your confidence," he returned. With that the battle started. He sent out Exeggutor, as before. This time Vincent finished him off in one hit. Rhydon next. I sent out June, I know she wouldn't be as effective, but she would be faster. I told her to use quick attack. She moved so swiftly, I could hardly see her. The Rhydon was powerless to stop her. She was just out of reach for all of Rhydon's attacks. She slowly whittled away his health, and he fell. Machamp was next. I kept June in the battle, she used a whirlwind and the Machamp fell. Pidgeot was next. Vincent was ready to fight. I ordered him to use flame wheel. It was not nearly as successful as it was on Exeggutor. Pidgeot used wing attack, and Vincent was hit hard. We were still in the battle and used bite. Pidgeot used roost and, even after our efforts, was healed completely. We fought all the harder, but it was useless. Pidgeot would continue to heal itself. We only just managed to finish it off, but Vincent was tired. I didn't know if he could take another. Blue sent out his last Pokémon. Arcanine. June put up a good fight, but was powerless against his thunder fang. I sent out Vincent.

"This will be an interesting battle," Blue said.

"No," I said, losing hope, "you have a more evolved Pokémon, and he is fresh for battle."

"I don't know, there are certain advantages to a less evolved Pokémon. Your Growlithe is still bursting with potential. Pokémon learn slower when they are evolved, even though they are stronger. I once had a rival that taught me that what really matters is the Pokémon, not the evolution, not the moves, the Pokémon. A truly great trainer can win no matter what the odds." Vincent used bite, Arcanine returned with fire fang. Strangely enough, even though it hit head on, it didn't work.

"Flash fire," Blue said, "that will make things more difficult." Intrigued, I used flame wheel on him. It worked perfectly. "Intimidate," he said, "Arcanine's ablity is intimidate, unlike your growlithe, he can be effected by fire attacks." We continued the battle, but Growlithe was already very tired. Arcanine used thunder fang, and Vincent fell once again. Only Aldred remained. If I was lucky I could just finish off his Arcanine before Aldred fainted. I hoped for the best, but feared the worst. Deep inside I hoped that Sherlock would swoop in to save me, just like he did before. Blue couldn't help laugh at something as pitiful as a Magikarp. Magikarp tackled Arcanine, but it had the same effect as an arrow hitting a tank. Arcanine bit Aldred on the tail and began throwing him about like a rag doll.

Before anyone knew what was going on the room was filled with light. Arcanine dropped Aldred, just as his tail started to grow longer. His mouth grew larger and more angular. His body got longer and his whiskers seemed almost like they would touch the floor. When he stopped glowing, he was 21 feet in length, blue and had a white underbelly. He looked really mad. Before anyone came to terms with what they had just seen, Aldred had bitten Arcanine and was shaking him just as Arcanine had done to him. Arcanine was knocked out. Blue handed me the Earth Badge and TM92, trick room.

"You remind me of my rival, he eventually became champion. He became everything I wanted to be. He even won the love of my grandfather," his expression clouded over when he said this, but he soon composed it in an obviously fake smile. "I'm sure you will go far!" I got my team healed, and set off for Route 2. There wasn't too much tall grass, and the trainers were easily beaten. It was in Viridian Forest that I had difficulties. I had started off at noon, and therefore had to camp out in the forest.


	2. Destiny Calls Very Loudly

The forest was dark, and the sound of wild Pokémon never stopped. The trees played games with my imagination. The branches swayed in the soft breeze. The light from a waxing gibbous moon made the shadows of the trees look like hands trying to pry their way to the heavens, all the while being confined to the earth. I saw two eerie red lights coming from the distance. They were partially shielded by the trees, so at first I simply thought it was my imagination. They were round, like taillights, but this world doesn't seem to have cars, no they were more likely eyes. With that realization I became very frightened. I sent out Vincent to set fire to some kindling I had found earlier, when the sun was only just setting. The eyes grew closer and closer, until a crooked yellow smile was visible below them. I was terrified. I just wanted it to go away.

"Vincent, use roar!" Vincent let out a mighty roar that made the very trees tremble, but my stalker did not flee. It didn't even flinch, it just kept coming. The yellow teeth looked like a zipper. I sent out June, mostly because I felt safer double teaming it. I told June to use quick attack, but when she went to hit him, it had no effect. I was really frightened now, especially since as it got closer I could see what little remained of its last victim on its hands. It looked a little like a doll that had been left alone to decay for many long years. I had no idea what to do. I was paralyzed with fear. There was only one thing I could think of.

"Sherlock!" I knew that he wouldn't hear me, but I truly hoped he would. I felt horrible about what I had said to him, but now wasn't the time for regret. I hoped beyond anything that he would swoop in and save me like he has done countless times before. "Sherlock!" Vincent sensed my panic and used flame wheel. It hit and the creature stopped advancing. I noticed this and ordered him to use bite. It was super effective. I had June finish it off with gust. Pidgey began to glow. Before I knew it, she was a Pidgeotto. I kept all of my Pokémon out of their balls that night. I didn't want to be alone again. I wondered where my friend was that night. I wondered if I would ever see him again. Would he stay here? Or would he leave long before me, never to return for me?

The sun rose and I left Viridian Forest. Pewter City was laid out before me. I asked Nurse Joy what type of Pokémon this gym leader used, as well as if she had seen a man with dark, curly, hair; wearing white pants and a dark blue vest. She said that Brock used rock types, and she had seen someone matching that description pass through, about three days ago. I thanked her and started training for the gym. I felt rather confident. I would use Aldred for my main attack. I trained for a few hours and then challenged Brock. He sent out Graveler first. It was a simple victory with aqua tail. Omastar was out next. I used Ice fang and finished him off in one hit. All of his Pokémon went down without too much trouble. I got the boulder badge without breaking a sweat. I was more than anxious to meet up with Sherlock. At least I knew he had gone this way. I knew now that I should not rush into things, so I stayed the night at the Pokémon center. I managed to get through route 3 very quickly. A path though Mount Moon was the fastest way to get to the next gym. I needed to get through this as fast as I could, both for my family, and to catch up with Sherlock. I had no proof that it was him, but I had hope that it was. I stopped for the night at Mt. Moon Square. A man said that I should look at the pool during the full moon. Not making anything of the local custom, I did.

The moon reflected brightly in the pool. The Clefairy and Clefable danced to an unheard rhythm. They chanted strangely. The man joined me by the pool. "

Many say that they come from a different planet. They gather strength from the moon, only evolving when they touch a moon stone." The Clefairy floated and spun on shining wings. The stars were bright, but they did not compare to the moon. Two Clefable carried out a large, grey rock. With some effort they managed to throw it into the middle of the pool. The relic splashed into the pool, but before I could blink, it was rising up again. It burst though the layer of water and floated about 10 feet above the surface. It spun and rocked like an acrobat suspended on wires. The dancing grew more fervent, and the chanting grew faster. I had no idea what to expect. Were they summoning some sort of god from unknown depths of the moon? I could only imagine what Sherlock would say if he were here, or my family for that matter. The ceremony grew faster and faster until I could not keep up with the Pokémon. A clefairy split from the crowd and walked over to me. It handed me a small needle, like a surgeon would use for stitches. He then returned to the ceremony. I didn't think too much of it at the time. Suddenly, they all disappeared. I turned to the old man in shock.

"Where on earth did they go?"

"Tonight was a very special night," he replied, "Arceus has disappeared. Because of this, the land is slowly been dying. We have no one to protect us. If he does not return soon everything will be destroyed. Horrid things are already happening in other regions. I sent word to a friend in the Sinnoh region, but I haven't gotten back word for three months. I sent a messenger, but as soon as he crossed Sinnoh's border, he just stopped and didn't move. I sent others around to different parts, but got similar effects. The creation trio has stopped managing their duties. It is happening in other regions too. The people that are not frozen with time, or have been transported to another realm, are very depressed. This is the last non-effected region. If Arceus or the creation trio and the lake guardians don't return soon, I'm afraid we will all perish. Tonight the clefairy and clefable returned to the moon in a last ditch effort to save themselves from Arceus's wrath. We must not tell the other people though. Many don't know what is happening, and if they find out they will go into a mad panic."

"Why did you tell me then?" I couldn't help ask. "Why did you trust me not to tell anyone? You don't even know me?" He smiled softly.

"Because, you look like a strong trainer. One that understands his Pokémon. It is highly unlikely that you just came here for no reason on this very day. It is too much of a coincidence. All of the other trainers didn't stay when I offered. You may be able to persuade Arceus to come back. You only have one chance though, everyone only has one chance. Let me tell you a prophesy: _From far away a champion shall rise. A man who can tame even the gods. The path shall be long, and he shall lose what is most precious to him. Death shall rain down upon the people. And the gods will morn his loss. Life and Death shall break their endless dance. Time shall stop around the hero, and he shall face many terrible tests. The gods shall test him well, he shall be accompanied by his beloved Pokémon, if he succeeds, then all shall be restored. If he fails, everything shall be lost in the abyss. Gods and man shall die together. Blood and shadow mix, the endless dance to be restored. Sacrifice is the only path. The void must be destroyed. Purity must remain._ If you are the hero the legend speaks of, and I truly hope you are, you will need to take this flute." The old man handed me a strange purple instrument. It looked almost like coral. "We don't have much time left. You are the chosen one." With these words he seemed to rise up, his posture got straighter, and he looked younger. Perhaps it was just a trick of the moon. "As high priest of Arceus, I now lay the fate of the world to you. I know you can do it, Shaymin! " I was awestruck at the time. I didn't believe a word that man said, but even so, it was rather incredible. With a quick nod he released a Salamence, mounted it and flew off. "Remember," he called out one last time, "the ancient texts can be hard to translate, and the events may not be in that exact order! And many parts are no longer readable. Errors may have occurred!" White robes, showing he was truly the high priest, flapping in the breeze. I did not believe that I was truly the "chosen champion." I simply assumed that the man was trying to scam me into buying something. Time shares most likely. I still had to get the gym badges and rescue my family. I stayed at the now abandoned cabin overnight, and in the morning I started off for Cerulean City.

I caught an Oddish on my way. If I was to defeat Misty, I would need a grass type. My Oddish quickly grew, and he was soon a Gloom. While I was walking through the city, buying some extra supplies, I got a call. It was from the last person I wanted to hear from. Moriarty.

"Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does my garden grow? With pits so deep, and bodies in heaps, and yours will shortly follow." There was no video, so I was surprised when an all too familiar voice rang out.

"Stop it!" It was one of the voices I longed to hear so badly. "Sending me your little nursery rhymes won't do you any good. I thought you would have well learned that by now."

"Oh, I don't think so. You did throw me a slip, splitting up like that. In any case, I have something important to tell John." I hated the sound of this. "Your precious little wife has joined me, and decided to betray you."

"That is a lie and you know it!" Spat out Sherlock. "We both know that Mary is-" The video cut on.

"Is what Sherlock? Why don't you look into the eyes of the one you care for most of all, and tell him what he never wanted to hear?" Sherlock turned to my picture and looked straight into the camera. He closed his eyes for a moment, as if dreading what he was about to say.

"John, I'm not going to beat around the bush, I owe you as much. John, Mary is…"

"Is what?" I cried out.

"Dead." I was shocked by this reply from Sherlock. How could she be dead? It felt like only yesterday we were home, enjoying a nice cup of tea together.

"You had better hurry," Moriarty added, "otherwise you won't have a family to save." He started to laugh, but something strange happened. Suddenly I could hear my child crying, only to stop suddenly. I started to panic, but I wasn't the only one. I could see the worry on all of our faces, Moriarty's the most. He quickly swept the room with his eyes. He seemed to notice something in the corner of the room. The camera started to shake as he ran, even so, a black wall seemed to move across the room swallowing Moriarty before he could get out of the room. He just managed to scream before the image went entirely black. I started to take what the old man said seriously. I had just lost what was most precious to me, or so I thought. Sherlock and I were both shocked after what happened. Sherlock spoke first.

"Er, I'm sorry about your loss? Since your family is basically gone, and the path is still blocked, what would you like to do?" My rage built up again, and I couldn't help but yell at him again.

"What were you doing though out all of this?! When did Mary die? Why didn't you tell me?!"

"John! Do you really think that now is the time for that?!" He answered.

"If now isn't the time, then when?" I replied.

"I'm in Fushisa City right now. You are obviously in Cerulean City. Meet me in Saffron City, I will get there in less than a day. I will meet you by the department store. Get there as soon as you can. I will tell you everything." We signed off. The gym badges no longer mattered. I bought some supplies and headed down route 5. It was a very short route, and I reached Saffron City in just a few hours. Sherlock was already there.

"How on earth did you make it from Fuchisa City to Saffron City in so little time?"

"Oh, my Hydreigon knows fly. Have you been walking this entire time?"

"Maybe," I said with a slight touch of embarrassment.

"That's not important right now. Mary died just a few days ago. I didn't tell you because I had no idea where you were. I assumed that it would be best to tell you in person." His face fell, "so close too, I only had one more badge to go before we opened that gate. If only we would have taken on the gym leader in Viridian City on the day we got there…."

"No," I said, "I tried. He won with ease, he almost killed Vincent. Everything is going to pieces. We have to get out of here." We discussed what we should do for some time. We were only stopped when we saw the black gelatinous wall advancing towards us. Since it was coming from the west, we went to the east, and Lavender Town. The wall moved at a walking pace, and we were quickly able to outrun it with Sherlock's Hydreigon.

The town was quaint. I couln't stop thinking of my family. Before I had had a chance of survival. Now, with the walls of the world closing in on me and little to hope for my thoughts wouldn't leave them. We were about a day's walk from Saffron City, so we were safe for now. People from all over the region were crowding into this small town. Babies cried, and children whined about how they hadn't eaten in days. Sherlock was out on Route 8 experimenting with the black wall, and I was left to think about what I had lost.

The gods truly hated us. Asteroids rained down from the sky. The people went into a panic. There was nothing beyond this point; this was the last safe haven. Sherlock must have seen what was happening and returned to the town. Everything seemed like a bad dream. I didn't believe it, and I walked about in a daze. Little did I realize the danger I was truly in. Sherlock did though. A large ball of fire was heading straight for where I was standing. He fought through the crowds of frightened people to warn me. Unfortunately, it was too late. There was not enough time to communicate; there was only time for action. He just managed to push me out of the way before it hit. I turned toward Sherlock after I picked myself up. He was in pieces, literally. I held his top half in my lap. I tried to stop the bleeding. I refused to believe that he was beyond saving. I released Isaac, now a Tyranitar, to help apply pressure. His four other pokemon released themselves and tried to help me.

"It-t-t's n-n-no use," Sherlock said as blood seeped from his mouth. "I-I-I'm s-s-s-s-sorry, I do-on't t-think I will be c-coming back this time."

"Don't speak," I said, "save your energy!"

"John, it-t won't-t do much good. I'm half dead already." He began to laugh sickly. "I-I-I want-t-ed to tell a j-j-j-oke, but-t-t I forgot half of it. H-h-how is s-s-such a clean cut possible?" He laughed a little harder. "John, in all due serious, I always want-t-ted to t-t-tell you, you are my-y-y other-r half-f-f."

"Sherlock!" I yelled, "Now is no time for jokes! You need to save your strength."

"No, really. John, *cough**cough*" blood poured out of his mouth. "I-I-I…." he began to cough more and more violently. Before I knew it, he was dead. I refused to believe it. I tried to do CPR, I did compressions until my arms were so stiff I couldn't move them. I did mouth to mouth, but deep inside I knew it was over.

"Come on Sherlock! Don't you dare leave me! Not again! I still haven't forgiven you for last time." My cries were in vain. I could no longer contain my grief and rage. I knew exactly what I had to do. Arceus was my only hope. I would save whoever was left. I would not let anyone suffer the way I had. The darkness grew closer, moving faster than before; even so, I hardly cared. I took out the strange flute given to me by the priest. I began to play it. I didn't know what to play on it, or even how to play. The notes came to me, and I played an eldritch melody, composed of notes I had never heard of before, and something tells me that no one else had heard them either. A great portal opened up and a snow-white Pokémon emerged. It had a grey underside; green eyes with red pupils stared into mine. It was over 10 feet tall. It roared and everything stopped. The people were frozen, as well as the black wall.

"Why have you called me, Shaymin?" Arceus seemed to speak directly into my mind. His gaze was frightening, and I wondered why everyone seemed to call me Shaymin.

"Almighty Arceus, I have come to try to save the people of this world." I tried to be as respectful as I could be.

"Shaymin, if believe that you are the chosen one, you know what this means? It will be up to you to purify the void." I nodded.

"I'll just, purify it then. If I may ask a question, why are you calling me Shaymin? My name is John."

"You are a Shaymin. The gratitude Pokémon. Although I have never seen you exactly, there is one other Shamin. He was with his human trainer when Dialga and Palkia could no longer perform their duties. The two were frozen in time, or perhaps frayed along with the land, much like your human daughter. We have been battling the growing void for many years now. Holding it off until you arrived. If you do not know your true form, then allow me to show you." With that he stretched out his front, right leg, and lightly touched me. I began to glow. I felt the light reach all throughout my body. I felt myself growing smaller, but I felt more powerful, and freer, as I shrunk. When I stopped, I was only about 8 inches high, but I felt stronger than ever. "In order to purify the void, you must first purify yourself. You must restore the balance of the world. The tests will be hard, but you must complete them. When you are ready, step though the portal. If you pass, I shall transport you to the void. Go forth John the Shaymin, go forth and cleanse the void." A golden portal opened to my right. I didn't question a god, especially since now I was not even 1/8 of his size. My Pokémon were frozen in time along with all of the people. My legs were short and stubby and it took quite a while to get over to the portal. I had to pass by Sherlock's legs. His white pants were now crimson. He had lost a lot of blood on both sides. No matter what I had done, he would have still died. Although I felt foolish for trying, I didn't regret it. I no longer had time to dwell in the past, but I refused to leave him like that. With great effort, I dragged his legs over to his body. I took out the needle the clefairy had given me. Some vines grew and I used them as thread to sew the two halves back together. I knew I didn't have time to bury him properly, and I don't think I could stand to do it again, so I just grew more vines over the body. I brushed through his dark curls for the first and last time.

I entered the gate and just as I crossed into it I felt a pain like I never experienced before. It felt like someone had stabbed me with a white-hot fire iron (they are also called fire pokers). I rolled up into a ball. It felt like I was on fire. Other types of pain came later. I also felt like I was being cut in half, and with my small body, I don't think it would be too hard. It felt like it lasted an eternity, but eventually the pain lessoned and lessoned, until I couldn't feel it at all. I didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Soon a deep voice rang out.

"You have finished the preliminaries. Your real test shall begin now." An inky blackness came over me and I lost consciousness.


	3. One Final Battle

When I woke up I was in my bed back in London. Everything had been a dream. Mary was beside me as always. I got up to freshen myself up. That was the strangest dream I had ever had. What on earth was up with those creatures? Asteroids? Really? Would that even be possible? It felt so real though. At least it was over now. I splashed some water on my face. Mary joined me in the bathroom.

"Is everything okay?" She asked with concern.

"It was just a dream," I replied.

"Another one? I thought the therapist was supposed to be helping with this." She looked deeply into my eyes, "would you like to talk about it?"

"No, it is over now, and that is what matters."

"Sherlock, again?" She asked.

"Sort of," I replied. Mary gently touched my shoulder.

"He's safe. You know that. All of us are looking out for him, not just you. We all care." I nodded, she was right. I had nothing to fear. I went back to bed, but I couldn't sleep. I ended up going over to my beloved old flat.

When I got over there Sherlock was talking to someone. I was a little offended that he was doing a case without me, but I soon got over it.

"John, I was just discussing with this man about some matter of national security." The way he said every word reinforced the fact he was bored. "I don't think I'll take the job."

"Please sir! This could mean another world war. How many times must I tell you?" I took my usual seat across from Sherlock. "In the middle east a large number of small countries have joined into larger nations. They have declared war on each other over the assassination of one of their political leaders as tension has risen over blame. Religion also plays a part in the conflict. Few countries have stayed out of the conflict. Unfortunately the west gets most of its oil from the countries in the conflict. Without that oil the economies of the west would go entirely bankrupt. Trucks could no longer ship our goods. We couldn't produce any more plastic products or packaging. We would basically have to revert back to horses for transportation. The only way we can get oil is to pick a side of the conflict, or fight each other for the oil in the few neutral countries. You must find the real culprit! Now that so many nations have nuclear weapons, the casualties will be enormous! The UN can't do anything to stop this; they never really had too much power anyways."

"Leave the political squabble to Mycroft." Sherlock said boredly.

"We would love to, but we can't get directly involved. If we were to directly send a government official to resolve the issue, it would look like we were trying to make negotiations for an oil contract. It would only escalate the conflict!" He quickly added "If not for your love of your mother country, we are willing to pay any price for your services."

"Fine, fine. You will arrange travel for the two of us. We will leave in the afternoon." Sherlock turned to me, "were you planning anything for today?" Before I could say anything the man interrupted me.

"You don't seem to understand. We are only hiring you, Mr. Holmes."

"You also don't seem to understand," Sherlock corrected, "this is my blogger. I wouldn't dream of taking a case without him. If he isn't going, then I'm afraid I won't be taking the case."

"That's alright," I said, "Mary and I were thinking of doing something today anyways."

"Well then that's too bad. And makes for a really pathetic excuse considering that as he was explaining the job, I texted Mary telling her that you would be gone for two to three days."

"Is that really all the time you think it will take?" The man asked. "Two to three days?! We have put some of our best men on this case weeks ago! And they still haven't found the killer yet! What makes you think you can do it in two to three days?"

"Actually," Sherlock said, "for most of that time we will be traveling. It is 7 hours one way. "

"How do you even know where to start? You haven't even seen the body yet!" The man yelled.

"Simple, we go over the crime scene quickly, and then head to Jerusalem. Whoever it is will most likely be trying to build tension further. Jerusalem would be the perfect place. That is where he will be hiding." The man looked disgusted, but without much delay we were set. I went home to pack up some things and tell Mary goodbye. Everything went off without a hitch, and soon we were heading off to the capital of the newly formed country, Beleda.

Everything went well. Sherlock was right, it took longer to get here than to find the killer. The president of Beleda was killed when meeting with the foreign minister of Dola. The president of Beleda was poisoned with Atophan. After the meeting, the president began to vomit often, as well as have hemorrhages throughout the day. His liver was badly damaged, and in about a week, he was dead. As it turned out, the actual murder was dressed as a waiter and snuck the drug into his food. All was well, until we caught up with the murderer.

We managed to corner him in a small building. He was an anarchist. We hadn't contacted the local police before we started chasing him, so no one knew our results. The building was in the middle of nowhere. There would be no one to help us.

"You have nowhere to run!" I yelled at the criminal.

"I don't have to!" He yelled back. "You will be the ones running!" He lifted up his coat just enough to reveal a time bomb strapped to his chest. "Leave and we shall all live another day! Remain, and we all die together! You haven't told anyone that I am guilty. If we all die, then the war shall still commence! I will have won. If you let me live though, I will fight another day, I won't stop here! And I shall create the only true way people were meant to be, with no government! Either way, I win!" It was in that moment that I knew what I had to do.

"Sherlock, go tell the police. He is right. We can't let him leave. I will stay here. Go!"

"John, don't try to be a hero! You are going to get your fool head blown up!"

"GO!" Without thinking twice, I threw him out the door and blockade it with the chair in the corner. Neither I nor the murder could escape. I could hear Sherlock yelling at me from outside.

"John! John! Stop it! It's not worth it! Think of your wife and child!" His cries started out in anger, but soon became panicked. "What will I tell Mary? What about your child? John! Mary can't raise her alone! No one will miss me! Let me take your place! John! John? You don't have to do this! We can just catch him again! There is no reason to do this. You don't have to be the hero! The bomb is a simple improvised explosive device. Only the building is in the blast radius, please come out!"

"Just get the police!" The timer slowly counted down, I wouldn't have enough time to leave the building, it eventually reached zero. The bomb exploded and the room was consumed with fire. It melted my skin, and I caught on fire. The fire etched itself deeply into my flesh. I could feel myself slowly turning into a pyre. I was glad when I finally lost consciousness.

* * *

I was met with blackness. It wasn't quite what I had expected for an afterlife. I soon noticed that I wasn't alone. A tall being walked into my field of view. It was very tall, and quite scruffy. It was a human, or at least a humanoid. It was wearing torn red pants, and a torn vest, covered in blood. It was really tall. I couldn't make out the head at all. The darkness wasn't helping. Its arms were outstretched, like a zombie. It was feeling around for something. It almost stepped on me. I wondered if I could die again, even if I couldn't, it would probably hurt. The thing saw me just in time. It kneeled over. It tried to grab me. I ran as fast as I could. I didn't know what it would do when it caught me, but I didn't want to find out. It began to chase after me. It had legs that were a lot longer than mine, and it soon caught up. It tried to pick me up again. I tried to evade it again, but this time it was no use. I curled up preparing for the worst. I fit in one of its hands. With its other hand it began to poke around me. It only stopped when a deep voice reverberated thought the blackness.

"Well done Shaymin. You have passed our tests." I knew that voice, it was Arceus. "This shall be your trainer. The chosen hero." I uncurled from my ball to look up at the human trainer. The darkness was still too thick to see his face, even though I was a lot closer now. "Go forth and cleanse the void!"

"Chosen hero?! What are you talking about? Who are you?!" An all too familiar voice rang out from the creature. I no longer had to see its face to know who it was. "And what's with this creature?!"

"That's hurtful, Sherlock." I replied telepathically, "It's not nice to call people creatures." It tensed up and almost dropped me.

"John?!" He practically screamed in my ears. "What happened to you? You're even shorter than before." Arceus chuckled, but soon put an end to our reunion.

"You must proceed. Before it is too late. Just go straight, now go!" We didn't refuse a god, and started off. The darkness was smothering. The walk was very long. Sherlock ended up caring me.  
"So…" I started off, "you aren't dead. Again. This is becoming a bad habit with you."

"I didn't plan this one," he replied.

"Do you know how you survived? You were split in two."

"No idea. Last thing I remember is you hovering over me, and then here I was, wandering around in the darkness. I couldn't feel my legs before this, but I figured it out when I saw that they were only attached to my torso by some stiches."

"So the stiches really did help?"

"Yep, if I didn't have them I would only be half the man I am now." This sort of exchange went on for a while, until we saw some light in the blackness. We, or Sherlock, began to run for it. I guess he was just as tired of the darkness as I was. We soon got to the light.

I swore I saw something in my peripheral vision. I saw it again. I tried to tell Sherlock, but he had also seen it, and motioned for me not to make a sound.

"When I put you down, use sweet sent. We are going to try to lure him out," he whispered in my ear. He put me on the ground and I followed his instructions. He was more of the strategist than I was, and I trusted him. I took a deep breath and let it rise up from my back with the scent of the flowers that bloomed on me. Sure enough, the thing stopped running around in and slowly started advancing towards us. It seemed to be enjoying my scent, but then again it was hard to tell. It was a large shapeless black blob. It had gold ruins running all over its body. It had some legs, much like a spiders, but the most interesting thing was that it was constantly shifting and changing, like a clump of play-doh being kneaded. Sometimes it would get bigger, and sometimes smaller. It wasn't only its body that was like this, its legs also acted like this. Sometimes it seemed to take form, only to become an unrecognizable blob again.

"Use leech seed," Sherlock said. Once again, I did what I was told. It seemed to be angry when I did this, and it hit me with one of its legs, and I fell back. It hurt, but I refused to give up. Sherlock was more concerned than I was. "Are you alright?" he asked, checking on me. I nodded. He seemed less confident about his next command, and soon I found out why. "Sweet kiss, John, use sweet kiss."

"What?!" I yelled at him. "I'm not going to kiss that thing!"

"You don't have to," Sherlock said, "you only have to blow it a kiss." I gave him a dirty look. "Do I not have enough gym badges to train you?! Just blow that thing a kiss! It isn't too hard!" In the time we spent arguing, the thing was charging up an attack. It unleashed on me a devastating hyper beam. It hit me hard; unfortunately, Sherlock was also affected. Just like with the asteroid, he had jumped in front of the blast. His breathing was slow. This time, however, I knew I could save him. I quickly blew "the void" a kiss, and then used healing wish on Sherlock. I willed my strength to leave me and go to him. He would be fully restored. I would be left only just conscious. Luckily my sweet kiss bought me some time. The thing became confused, and in that time I was able to restore some health though leech seed. Sherlock got up. He saw the condition I was in, and we both knew that we would have to finish this up fast, or I would have to be healed.

"Use synthesis while it is confused. Continue using it until you are at full health." I let the power of the light seep into me. Before I knew it I felt better than ever. The thing's confusion over my kiss wore off shortly. It thrust its legs at me, eventually hitting me. I was hurt, but not too badly. Throughout the battle, Sherlock seemed to get grimmer, and grimmer.

"Energy ball." I summoned a green glowing orb and threw it at the beast. It hit, but the beast didn't seem to be too effected by it. The creature skittered towards me until it was just centimeters away from my face. It opened two red eyes and stared into mine. I was held by its gaze, unable to escape. I felt myself growing more and more tired, until it was too difficult to keep my eyes open, and I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep, but it didn't stay like that for long. I began to have vivid nightmares. I thought I could just hear Sherlock, screaming about something.

I dreamt that I was in a very soft, dark place. It was small and dry. I could just make out the voices of others; they seemed as if they were coming from another room. I didn't feel awake enough to move, so I simply tried to listen in on the voices. I distinctly heard Mary's, but I couldn't make out what she said. I concentrated harder on hearing what was being said, this time I only just made it out.

"Oh John," she said with a sigh, "you will never know just how much I love you, or how much I miss you." I was confused by this, but I kept listening. Perhaps the answers would come later. Unfortunately, only worse things followed. "Amanda is becoming such a beautiful girl; she grows up more and more every day. I wish you were here to see it." I grew more and more confused, but a horrible though began to grow in the back of my mind. "Why did you have to take that case? Sherlock refuses to tell me anything about it. I can't imagine what was going on. The look on his face when he showed up with what was left of you," she said with dismay, "I could have sworn he looked half-insane. I guess it was for our protection. Anything that could drive the great detective Sherlock Holmes to madness isn't meant for our minds. He finally got out of the mental hospital last week…. I'm so sorry about what happened. I couldn't stop him." I knew that the gnawing fear in the back of my mind, that horrible thought that had entered my mind, was completely true. "I thought that the physiatrist took away all of his guns, but I guess he missed one." She began to cry, "I know how you would feel about this. Mrs. Hudson found the body yesterday." I tried to hit the lid of what I realized was a casket, but I couldn't seem to move. "One more thing you should know," she said this with even more sadness than anything else, "some government workers came by today to see if I was competent as a parent. I guess after your death, I guess I just let some things go, and they want to take away Amanda. There is nothing I can do. They are coming by in three days. After that, we won't ever see her again. Oh John, I just don't know what to do!" I just wanted the dream to end. I tried to scream, but it was of no use. After a while Mary left, and I was left alone with my thoughts. The temperature increased. I couldn't think of what to do. I just wanted to wake up. My wish was eventually granted, and I awoke in Sherlock's arms. He was shaking me, trying to wake me up. Both of us were covered in scratches and burns.

"We have to finish this now. Seed flare!" His voice didn't convey much emotion, but his eyes spoke volumes. He had been really worried about me. I took a deep breath. I would not let my dream, my nightmare, come true. I sucked in all of the darkness, all of the blackness, into the seeds on my back. I didn't know if I could hold all of the impurities. I felt myself being consumed by the darkness. The flowers on my head turned a black so dark I wouldn't have believed that it was possible. I began to glow, so much that it was blinding, even to me. It was becoming too much for me, I released all of the energy in an all-consuming beam of green light. The beast writhed in the light and was destroyed. It took much more of my energy than I thought. I found that I couldn't stand up anymore. I fell to the ground.


	4. Epilogue: the End of an Adventure

The next thing I knew I was at the Pokémon center. Nurse Joy was spraying something on me. Chansey was busy wheeling poke balls around on a large cart. Sherlock was sitting in the corner of the waiting room. Nurse Joy picked me up and carried me over to Sherlock.

"Make sure he gets plenty of rest. Other than that he is fine. You should get some rest too. I don't want to have to sedate you again. _He is fine!_" Sherlock nodded and took me from Nurse Joy's arms. She looked a bit upset with him, and he looked horrible. He looked like he hadn't slept for days. She showed him to the back of the Pokémon center, where they would let journeying trainers spend the night. He followed her and flopped down on one of the beds. He was asleep before he even hit the bed. I snuck out of the center and took a quick walk to clear my head. I did my best to tie a scarf around my neck, to show that I already had a trainer. I walked into the woods and found a clearing.

A bright light filled the clearing, and I was once again met eye to eye with Arceus.

"You should learn how to turn back into your human form," he seemed to project into my mind, "I will teach you."

"Just one question first," I said timidly, "I have been wondering... I thought I saw Sherlock die, how did he survive?" Arceus looked at me, his wisdom filled eyes peering into mine.

"The answer is simple, your friend did not survive. You forget, young Shaymin, I have created all you see before you, and much you don't see. It would have been mere child's play to revive your trainer. Even so, I was not the one who returned his life to him. Powers greater than mine control the hands of fate. Even I am not immune to its control. Like a puppet master in a play, fate may take out a character from the scene, only to bring them back later. He had passed his test, and was therefore found worthy to partake in the events as they unfolded." I was still confused but I didn't ask any more questions. We worked on transformations for a few hours, eventually I got it. I walked back to the Pokémon center as a man. When I got there Sherlock was in a panic.

"Where have you been?!" he yelled. "I've been looking under everything for you. There are trainers out there John! You could have been caught. I swear, did you even think that what you were doing might be dangerous?!" Nurse Joy looked at him strangely. He had been looking for a Pokémon. Nurse Joy turned to me.

"I'm so sorry about that. This man has been waiting here for a week for his Shaymin to wake up from a coma. The only rest he got was from when I sedated him. On the same day it woke up it ran away. He has been tearing up the center looking for it. It has been very stressful, so it is not surprising that he would hallucinate. If you could possibly help him find it, I'm sure he would appreciate it." Nurse Joy though that Sherlock was nuts, and wouldn't let him leave with me. She most likely thought that he would try to catch me in a poke ball and try to battle with me. I offered to look outside for it. I promptly changed back into a Pokémon and went back inside. Nurse Joy looked overjoyed when I returned, most likely because Sherlock would finally go now. She scooped me up and handed me to Sherlock.

"Get out." Her typically cheery voice was replaced with that of a frustrated woman finally kicking out guests that had long overstayed their welcome. "And please don't come back soon!" We left the Pokémon center; I didn't really want to turn back into a man, that would mean that Sherlock would no longer carry me. It wasn't that I was lazy, it was more of I didn't want to leave his warm arms, I never wanted to feel them grow cold again.

"Is it true?" I asked. "was I really out for a week?"

"Not quite," Sherlock answered, "it was actually a closer to two." I knew he hadn't left my side. He hadn't even put on new clothes. His pants had become black as the blood dried. His split had healed for the most part, leaving only a very large scar running across his entire waste. It was visible because his shirt was so torn. Many tiny scratches were just about finished healing. I didn't know if I looked much better though. "I suggest that we start off for the gate. Everything has been restored. We can save your daughter now. I don't think Moriarty will be too much of a challenge after "the void." We can just break down the gate." We were in Vermillion city, because the Pokémon centers in Lavender Town and Saffron City were entirely full. We took a boat to Route 21, and then continued on to Pallet town. For the second time we jumped over the fence, and continued down the forest path. We saw the gate again. Sherlock took out his Tyranitar and smashed through it. We continued down a wooded path until we found a large building. We wandered around grey rooms until we finally found Moriarty.

"My goodness it took you a long time to get here. I expected you to make it over two weeks ago." Sherlock started with Isaac. Moriarty started with a Poliwrath. It was a long battle, but eventually Moriarty won. Sherlock took out his Hydreigon. The battle was long, but in the end the two were out of Pokémon, and tied. In the meantime, I was exploring the building, looking for my daughter. I found her, she was alive, and that was enough for me. The two called a sudden death round. Each one was going to call out one last Pokémon. Unfortunately, Moriarty would only let us leave if it was me he was fighting. I looked to Sherlock and he nodded. Moriarty sent out a Gengar. He was anxious to see what I released.

"John, I choose you!" Sherlock cried. I began to change back into the hedgehog-like figure. "There you are, you are fighting John," Sherlock said smugly. Moriarty was too shocked to say anything. He tried to make excuses, but Sherlock simply brushed them away.

"Fine," he spat out, "use your pet to fight me." Neither of us had a type advantage. Gengar was faster than I was, but I had higher hit points, attack, and defense. Only about one out of every three of my attacks hit, but in the end we still won. We left with victory still fresh on our lips.

I know that no one will believe this story, but to some degree it doesn't matter. Mary is gone, and now I am raising a child, not entirely alone though. Although sometimes I think it might be better for her if I was alone, I will always have the help of the world's greatest, and only, consulting detective.

* * *

**There, now no one can say that I don't write stories with happy endings.**


End file.
